Teaching Lab Delaware Department of Education, DE Report

Methodology and Presentation of Results

We have provided two types of results for each section: The results in the first three columns of the table refer to the overall group averages. We provide the group average for the diagnostic and follow-up surveys as well as the percentage point change (increase or decrease) over this time. It is important to note that the group that completed the diagnostic survey and the group that completed the follow-up survey are different in size. The results in the fourth column reflect the percentage of educators who improved their responses or sustained the highest level response from the diagnostic to follow-up survey. This group of educators is the same for both surveys and is smaller in size.

Section 1: Mindsets and Beliefs

Educators were asked a series of questions about their mindsets toward instruction and students on a 5-point Likert scale from 1- Strongly disagree to 5- Strongly agree. The questions focused on four core constructs surrounding mindsets and beliefs, specifically the recognition of race and culture, growth mindsets, high expectations, and taking accountability for equitable instruction.

¹

Methodological note: Mindsets and Beliefs questions were scored in the following way: for positively coded items, “1” and “2” were worth 0 points, “3” was worth 1 point, and “4” and “5” were worth 2 points. This was reversed for negatively coded items where “4” and “5” were 0 points, “3” was 1 point, and “1” and “2” were 2 points. Educators were considered to have improved if their score on the follow-up survey was higher than that of the diagnostic survey. (e.g., they responded “4” on the diagnostic and “5” in the follow-up for positively coded items, they responded “4” on the diagnostic and “3” in the follow-up for negatively coded items). Educators who responded with the highest-level responses (“4” and “5” or “1” and “2”, depending on the item) on both the diagnostic and follow-up surveys were considered to have sustained equitable mindsets, growth mindsets, high expectations, and/or accountability for equitable instruction.

Educators’ Averages Scores on Equitable Mindsets and Beliefs, by Survey Administration
	Average Scores on Equitable Mindsets & Beliefs			% of Educators that Improved or Sustained High Scores²
	Diagnostic Survey¹	Follow-up Survey¹	Percentage Point Change¹	% of Educators that Improved or Sustained High Scores²
Overall score	83%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Recognition of race & culture	57%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Holding growth mindsets	83%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Having high expectations and beliefs	97%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Taking accountability for equitable instruction	92%	NaN	NaN	NaN
¹ Note: The number of observations varies between items from 0 to 16 ² n = 1

The plot illustrates educators’ average scores from the diagnostic and follow-up surveys, which corresponds to the information in the first three columns of the table. Orange represents the diagnostic scores, and blue represents the follow-up scores. The arrows represent the directionality, showing an increase or decrease in the average scores.

Section 2: School Environment

Educators were asked about their school environment, including culture and climate on a 5-point Likert scale from 1- Strongly disagree to 5- Strongly agree. Specifically, educators were asked about trust and connectedness to other educators, their role in shaping their own professional learning, and confidence in implementing the curriculum in a way that maximizes positive impact for student learning.

²

Methodological note: Educators were considered to have positive perceptions if they responded “4” or “5” on the scale. They were considered to have improved on an item if their response on the follow-up survey was at least one response higher than the diagnostic response (e.g., they responded “3” on the diagnostic and “4” on the follow-up). Educators who responded with the highest-level responses (“4” or “5”) on both the diagnostic and follow-up surveys were considered to have sustained positive perceptions.

Educators’ Perceptions of School Culture and Climate, by Survey Administration, by Survey Administration
	% of Educators with Positive Perceptions of School Culture and Climate			% of Educators that Improved or Sustained Positive Perceptions²
	Diagnostic Survey¹	Follow-up Survey¹	Percentage Point Change¹
Overall score	75%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Trust in fellow teachers	100%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Connectedness to fellow teachers	100%	NaN	NaN	NaN
Have influence over professional learning	0%	NaN	NaN	NaN
I am confident that I am implementing the curriculum in a way that maximizes positive impact for student learning	100%	NaN	NaN	NaN
¹ Note: The number of observations varies between items from 0 to 1 ² n = 0

The plot illustrates the shifts in educators’ reported culture and climate, which corresponds to the information in the first three columns of the table. Orange represents the percentage of educators with positive perceptions in the diagnostic survey, and blue represents the percentage in the follow-up survey. The arrows represent the directionality, showing an increase or decrease in the percent of educators who agreed or strongly agreed with the items.

Section 3: Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Educators were asked a series of questions about their knowledge of instructional shifts and evidence-based instructional practices in their content area.

Section 3a: ELA Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge

In ELA, the questions focused on seven core constructs, as shown in the table.

Educators’ Average Scores on ELA Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge, by Survey Administration
	Average Scores of Educators with ELA Content & Pedagogical Content Knowledge			% of Educators that Improved or Sustained High Scores²
	Diagnostic Survey¹	Follow-up Survey¹	Percentage Point Change¹	% of Educators that Improved or Sustained High Scores²
Overall score	79%	70%	−8%	NaN
ELA instructional shifts	80%	100%	+20%	NaN
Fluency	56%	40%	−16%	NaN
Text complexity	90%	100%	+10%	NaN
Close reading	85%	40%	−45%	NaN
Building knowledge	91%	100%	+10%	NaN
Supporting students with unfinished learning	76%	60%	−16%	NaN
¹ Note: The number of observations varies between items from 1 to 16 ² n = 1

The plot illustrates the shift in educators’ average scores for ELA content and pedagogical content knowledge, which corresponds to the information in the first three columns of the table. Orange represents the diagnostic scores, and blue represents the follow-up scores. The arrows represent the directionality, showing an increase or decrease of average scores.

Section 3b: Math Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge

In Mathematics, the questions focused on four core constructs, as shown in the table.

Educators’ Average Scores on Math Content and Pedagogical Content Knowledge, by Survey Administration
	Average Scores of Educators with Math Content & Pedagogical Content Knowledge			% of Educators that Improved or Sustained²
	Diagnostic Survey¹	Follow-up Survey¹	Percentage Point Change¹	% of Educators that Improved or Sustained²
Overall score	NaN	83%	NaN	NaN
Math instructional shifts	NaN	73%	NaN	NaN
Equitable Math Instruction	NaN	93%	NaN	NaN
Supporting students with unfinished learning	NaN	91%	NaN	NaN
Effective Teaching Practices	NaN	82%	NaN	NaN
¹ Note: The number of observations varies between items from 11 to 0 ² n = 0

The plot illustrates the shift in educators’ average scores for Math content and pedagogical content knowledge, which corresponds to the information in the first three columns of the table. Orange represents the diagnostic scores, and blue represents the follow-up scores. The arrows represent the directionality, showing an increase or decrease of average scores.

Section 4: Teacher Observations by Administrators

Coaches, leaders, and/or administrators were asked about the areas they focus on when observing teachers in general and also whether they observe differences in teaching practices between teachers who have participated in Teaching Lab professional learning and teachers who have not.

First, coaches, leaders, and/or administrators were asked whether they focus on the following areas when observing teachers: The lesson is focused on a high-quality text or task. The questions and tasks address the analytical thinking required by the grade-level standards. All students have opportunities to engage in the work of the lesson.

Observation Practices of Coaches, Leaders, and Administrators, by Survey Administration, by Survey Administration
	% of Coaches, Leaders, and Administrators who Agreed or Strongly Agreed			% of Educators that Improved or Sustained²
	Diagnostic Survey¹	Follow-up Survey¹	Percentage Point Change¹	% of Educators that Improved or Sustained²
When observing teachers, I focus on… Overall score	98%	83%	−14%	NaN
Whether the lesson is focused on a high-quality text or task	93%	83%	−10%	NaN
Whether the questions and tasks address the analytical thinking required by the grade-level standards	100%	75%	−25%	NaN
Whether all students have opportunities to engage in the work of the lesson	100%	92%	−8%	NaN
¹ Note: The number of observations varies between items from 12 to 15 ² n = 1

The plot illustrates the shifts in coaches, leaders, and/or administrators’ reported observation practices, which corresponds to the information in the first three columns of the table. Orange represents the percentage who always or almost always focus on these aspects in the diagnostic survey, and blue represents the percentage in the follow-up survey. The arrows represent the directionality, showing an increase or decrease in the percent of educators who always or almost always focus on these aspects.

Coaches, leaders, and/or administrators were also asked to compare teaching practices between Teaching Lab participants and non-Teaching Lab participants in the follow-up survey. They were asked about the same three areas above.

Differences in Teaching Practices between Teaching Lab Participants and Non-participants, as Reported by Coaches, Leaders, and Administrators
	TL Teachers¹	Non-TL Teachers¹
The lesson is focused on a high-quality text or task	75%	42%
The questions and tasks address the analytical thinking required by the grade-level standards	67%	25%
All students have opportunities to engage in the work of the lesson	75%	42%
¹ n = 12

The graph illustrates the differences in teaching practices between teachers who have participated in Teaching Lab professional learning and teachers who have not, as reported by the coaches, leaders, and/or administrators.

Section 5: Lab Leaders

Lab Leaders were asked about their engagement in different activities, such as leading professional learning, leading PLC meetings, coaching teachers, sharing information and resources, and improving their own instructional practices.

	% of Lab Leaders who engaged in the activity¹
Improved my own instructional practice	33%
Led PLC meetings for teachers	17%
Coached teachers	50%
Shared information or resources with teachers	50%
¹ n = 3

The graph below illustrates the Lab Leaders participation in different activities.

Section 6: Student Work

No student work was analyzed at this location.

Section 7: Participant Feedback

Looking at participant feedback from Delaware Department of Education, DE we see good scores across the board:

Teaching Lab Performance on Participant Feedback Questions for Delaware Department of Education, DE
How Likely Are You To Apply This Learning To Your Practice In The Next 4-6 Weeks?	I felt a sense of community with the other participants in this course even though we were meeting virtually.	This course helped me navigate remote and/or hybrid learning during COVID-19.	% Who Say Activities Of Today's Session Were Well-Designed To Help Me Learn	S/He Effectively Built A Community Of Learners
91%	96%	65%	NaN	96%

Finally, looking at the textual feedback from participants we also see a lot of positive feedback, even when people are giving tips for improvement

Comments on what Went Well

Quotes from "Overall, what went well in this professional learning?"
"The first experiential--Notice and wonder and the mystery text. That experience was an effective protocol."
"The ability to collaborate with others was awesome!!! The shared resources will be used and provided much support."
"I feel like the session overall went well. The balance between synchronous and asynchronous activities was perfect and the breakout rooms were used effectively and efficiently. I appreciated the structure of the participant notebook. It was nice to have that note-taking document that was aligned to the presentation/activities we were completing."
"Contemplate then Calculate. I appreciated the intentional planning and execution of this activity."
"I thought it was a great day that ran seamlessly. The scheduled blocks of time for synchronous and asynchronous time is a perfect balance. This has become a great community of educators and I learn a great deal from everyone’s contributions."
"Collaborating with other coaches is always a valuable part of our learning sessions and I appreciate that time."
"The experiential activity really helped to solidify a process/routine for encouraging discourse in the classroom."
"Really appreciated the work that we did asynchronously today as well as the discussion immediately after to calibrate our scoring."
"Links to materials seemed clearest today of all sessions so far. This session felt more tightly aligned within itself today than others have."

Comments on Improving Experience

Quotes from "What could have improved your experience?"
"Due to the current circumstances in our district, I am unable to apply a lot of the great information at this current time. I would love the opportunity to discuss strategies that districts are using during virtual/hybrid learning to promote reading and writing and share successes."
"In person learning instead of Zoom - but this was very well done and I am not complaining!"
"In person learning instead of Zoom, but this was very well done and I am not complaining!"
"A little more time for the asynchronous work. I felt very rushed to complete the activity and probably would have done a better job if I had more time."
"So many links and links within links, it is a lot to keep track of and navigate between. Especially because when you make a copy of one and then to write on something you might need to make a copy of links within a document."
"Maybe some more use of tech tools like the whiteboard that we experienced a few sessions ago"
"I wish I had the standards that went along with the second video in Achieve the Core"
"Timing of this meeting was difficult. It is a very hard transition as we are so very busy right now. This work is very important, but there is so much to do right now!!!"
"Cut the some of the tasks down to accommodate the time- I would rather be asked to do less and do it well:)"
"It would have been helpful to see some examples of "dilemmas". I might have been over thinking it, but it was difficult for me to come up with one that was not about other people changing their practice because as coaches we want our teachers to change in practice to improve student learning. Again, I might have been overthinking it."

Additional Comments

Quotes from "Do you have additional comments?"
"I appreciate this time, as it loads my coaching tool box. At this time it's just really hard to engage teachers, but what Nicole, Renee, and Lindsey said; something like, what's the small thing we can do to relieve the stress steered also towards pushing teachers to best practice? This is a good mindset and I thank you for your support!"
"I appreciate everything that you a doing to help us do our job effectively with teachers."
"Would like additional resources on the progression examples in the CVA Progressions Worksheet. Are there any resources out there? Has anyone done this with different common core topics/stands?"
"Thank you for being so well planned and for considering our feedback when developing the structure of the day. It's hard to keep people motivated for an entire day of PL, but you do a nice job of balancing everything to keep us engaged."
"Thank you for creating a collaborative culture where everyone's voice is heard and we can all feel comfortable sharing our experiences and ask questions."

Teaching Lab Delaware Department of Education, DE Report